Portable combined provision-box and table.



P. J. & M. E. ACKELS. PORTABLE COMBINED PKOVISION BOX AND TABLE. APPLICATION FILED. NOV-30, l9l8.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

I Wh 41 far as:

Patented Apr. 22,1919.

P. J-. & M. -E. ACKELS. PORTABLE COMBINED PROVISION BOX AND TABLE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV-30, I918. 31 i Patented Apr. 22,1919.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

PAUL J. ACKELS AND MATHIAS E. ACKELS, OF SIDNEY, NEBRASKA.

isomer.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 22, 11919.

Application filed November 30, 1918. Serial No. 264,824.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, PAUL J. AcKELs and MATHIAS E. AoKnLs, citizens of the United States of America, residing at Sidney, in'

the county of Cheyenne and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Portable Combined Provision-Boxes and Tables, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to portable combined tables and provision boxes or commissaries, having folding legs, falling table leaves that form the closing sides of the provision container and also including an iceformlow supporting wear plates thereunder and fenders for the ends thereof, during storage or transport; and legs that may be opened out and releasably fastened to sup port the container body in an elevated position when the device is desired a table. 1

A further object is to construct such a table and container that has no undetached or loose parts that may be easily removed displaced and forgotten and lost in breaking camp or otherwise changing locations.

to be 'used'as And a still further object is to facilitatethe exclusion of road dust from the inclosure when closed and folded for traveling. Also suitable foldingadjustable props to support the sides of the container when swung upwardly to form table leaves, or to set such leaves on an incline convenient for writing on; and jointed strut braces with suitable.

catches to retain the normally folding legs opened to sup ort' the container in an elevated position or the desired table purposes.

These objects are attained by the structure having identical structure and function, and in Wh1ch Figure 1, is an exterior perspective view of the device folded and closed for transportation; Fig. 2, a similar view of the opposite side; Fig. 3, a fragmental plan on the broken line 3-3 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4, a perspective view of the whole device unfolded and opened up as a table; Fig. 5, a fragmental vertical section illustrating the foldable prop; Fig. 6, a cross-section through'the knee or toggle joint of the falling leaf prop on the dotted line 6 in Fig. 5; Fig. 7 a top plan view of the legs at one end showing the hinged sliding strut braces and releasable catches; and, Fig. 8, is a fragmental vertical section of the body at the place of attachment of the legs, further illustrating the strut braces and the stop catches.

An oblong rectangular chamber for the container main body comprises in its inclosure walls the upright opposite end walls 2 and 2, having exterior bases 4 and connected by a bottom board or plate 5 and a top plate or table bed 7 all of substantially equal width and fixed securely together at their meeting angles to and bottom. A cross partition 8 spaced rom one end wall divides off a portion of the chamber allottedto the ice container chest. Between this partition and the opposite end the spaceisspanned by one or more shelves 9. The side Walls 10 and 10 of this chest are set in so that their outer surfaces are flush with the side edges of the top, bottom, end and partition of the body. By this means when the side bases 11 and 11 of the side walls are added and the falling table-leaves 12 and 12 are released by folding their props and closed down, the side ,walls of this chest part arethus made double thickness, as shown in Fig. 3, the better to resist the heat. A metallic ice container 13 of rectangular form is made of smaller dimensions than the inside of the chest, to provide refrigerating storing space 14 therearound within the chest. A removable trap door 15 disposed in the top of this chest.

.through the overlappingpart of the table bed, gives access thereto and permits removal and replacement of the ice container for cleaning and emptying the water from melted ice. A section 16 of one side base is divided out and hinged at the bottom, to give access to the larger shelved part of the body chamber without swinging up the falling The opposite short flap 29, jointed therewit leaf above. Handles 17 and 17 disposed centrally, one on the outside of each end wall, serve to manually lift and carry the box either opened up or when closed and folded.

The levers 12 that fall or swing downwardly to form the top sections of the sides and form the outer sections of the table top when elevated, have their inner-upper edges hinged to the side edges of the box top or table bed in the usual manner. They are releasably supported in the elevated positions by foldable props. These props each consist of a channel-iron base portion 18, a bar part 19 having one end jointed between the flanges near one end of the channel by a cross-pintle 20. This forms an elbow joint in the prop, the bar im. inging the web of' the channel to limit the opening movement to a straight alinement of the two parts to support the raised leaf, as shown in Figs. 5 and 4.- Or the bar closing into the channel by flexure, bringing the folded prop to the osition shown by the dotted lines 21, WlllCh allows the leaf to fall and close the side of the box. The outer end of the 'bar is connected to the leaf by the joint-ear 22. The opposite end of the channel has alongitudinal slot 23 with a terminal lateral branch or notch 24; to engage the seat pin 25 disposed through the slot and seated stationarily on the inside of the end or on the partition of the box. By disengaging the notch from the su porting pin the slot allows the lower end 0 the prop to slide downwardly and the folded elbow to swing inwardly to clear the falling leaf. Also, by seating the plain unnotched ends of the slots of the opened props on the seatpins, the leaves are supported at an incline like a desk top, convenient for writing on.

The four foldable legs 26 to support the box elevated and bring the topto table height, are each shaped from a si 1e piece of right angled angle-iron. The s ide flange 27 of each leg has its top end constructed to form a part of the pintle-joint 28 of a spring hinge of which this flange is the lower flap. is provided with attaching screw-holes b) which these upper flaps are attached on the outside close to the ends of the side bases of the box. The hinge pintle joint is set lower than the bottom of the box and the spring is disposed in the structure of the hinge to normally close the leg inwardly and upwardly ainst said bottom. They are further a justed. in attaching so that the jointed side flanges of each end pair of legs close one underlapping the other against the bottom of the box body. While the opposite side flanges '30 are arranged to swing and slide up one against the other against the end of the box, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, where the legs are shown as folded; nested together embracing the lower end angle of clined and give. the table a. broader standing I base. Each leg is limited in its outward swing and set in standing position by a sliding strut or brace-rod 31. The rods each have one end jointed to the ear 32 on the inside of the leg, intermediately of its length, and the opposite end is disposed up through a long cross-slot 33- in the bottom plate 5 of the box. The upper inner ends of these rods have the T-shaped heads 34, to prevent their withdrawal, slide along onthe top of the slotted bottom plate and engage the hooked spring clips 35, to limit the outward opening swing of the legs. These spring clips or catches have gibbous faces 36 that close over the engaged T-shaped heads of the rods and the ice-container chest airtight when closed, all the closure 'oints are felted. with strips of felt fabric, isposed and attached in the usual manner for such purposes.

We claim:

1. A portable combined provision box and 'table, comprising a rectangular box body,

foldable legs, each composed of a piece of right angled angle-iron, an attaching flap spring hinged to an end of one flange of said angle-iron and adapted to be fastened to the vertical side of the box to normally swing said flange against the bottom of said box and the opposite flange against the vertical outer wall thereof, a brace rod havin one end hinged intermediately to the leg and its opposite end shaped to form a head, a horizontal guideway on the bottom of the box to carry the head, a stop to engage the head to limit the outwar swing of the leg, and a spring catch at the stop to releasably engage the head.

2. A portable combined provision box and table, comprising a rectangular box body, leaves hinged to the side edges of the top thereof to fold downwardly onto the sides of the box, suitable foldable props to support the raised leaves level with said top,-

. the top ends of said braces to prevent their withdrawal from the slots, and spring catches on the tops of said plates to releas-- ably engage said T-shaped heads to limit the outward swing of the legs and to sustain them opened against the action; of their spring hinges.

3. A portable combined provision box and table, comprising a rectangular inclosure having an intermediate vertical partition to form two chambers, one of said chambers completely inclosed and the other open at opposite sides, opposite side bases extended upwardly to partly close the sides of the open chamber and partly overlap the opposite sides of the inclosed chamber, table leaves hinged to the opposite edges of the top of the box and adapted to fall and close the remaining open spaces above the bases of the sides and in like manner overlap the side walls of the inclosed chamber, sultable releasable props to support the spread of elevated leaves, and angle-iron legs hinged o the ends of said bases to fold with one flange of each leg horizontal under and against the bottom of the box and the opposite flange standin vertically and against the end'thereof. Y

4. A portable combined provision box and table, comprising a box bottom, a to and vertical ends all of equal width an their ends secured together bring the side edges flush, a cross-partitionof width like said top and bottom and spaced from one end to form an ice container chest and refrigerating chamber, side walls to said chest set in flush with the side edges of the inclosing top, bottom, end and gartitio'n, a flush door disposed through sai top into the chest,

of the top of the box to close the sides thereof and overlap the side Walls of the chest, suitable folding props to support the opened leaves, and angle-iron legs hinged to the lower corners to fold inwardly and embrace the lower end angles ofthe box and form inclosing fenders therefon 5; A portable combined provision box and table, comprising upright box ends, a bot-' tom plate of width equal to said ends, atop plate of width equal to said ends, a cross partition of like width spaced from one end to divide ofi' an ice-container chest, side walls to said chest p'art' set in flush with the side edges of the inclosing top, bottom, partition and end, and table leaves hinged at the side edges of the top plate to swing down against the side walls of said chest part to double the thickness thereof and to form single thickness inclosing side walls for the fallingtable leaves hinged to the side edges door disposed to give. access to said chest only at the top thereof and having its closure set in flush with the top of said top plate.

In testimony whereof We have hereunto aflixed our signatures. PAUL J. ACKELS.

MATHIAS E. ACKELS. 

